Broken Fairytale
by Bitter-Sweet Teardrops
Summary: He knew that he wouldn't make it out of this mess alive. And he knew that she knew it too. But saying those words to her was the only way he could comfort her. Because he didn't want to see her cry, to feel her tears. Becuase, he knew he was going to die.


Hi everyone!!

Err, this is my very first fanfic, and I'm really nervous about how it's going to turn out. Um, if you're going to flame, please don't be too harsh in your judgment. And yes. I know this type of beginning has just been done so many times, but I wanted to do it because it ties in well with the rest of my story. So yeah. I hope you'll enjoy it.

Please leave a review (if you can) because that'd be awesome.

Oh yea, the disclaimer: **I do not own Naruto, because I am writing fanfiction.** Obviously. But I really think that Mr. Kishimoto should make the Naruto manga chapters longer.

Hope you like the story!

**Broken Fairytale**

Naruto had always told her stories about himself even before they had started a relationship. When they had just started dating, he told her that she had and always would be the person who was his encouragement. He told her about his pranks and his happy memories. When their relationship had escalated into a more serious one, he told her about his childhood, and the villager's treatment of him, not because he wanted to, but because she had wanted to know. Of course, he started off by waving his hand carelessly (and almost tipping his ramen onto the ground), and the "Nah, it doesn't matter' comment that he always gave, but after a few more tries, he had given in, and spilled all his misery to her. But the part which she respected most about him by far was that he told her about the fox before he asked her to be his girlfriend.

"Hinata-chan," he had said, "Uhm, I have something I've gotta tell you." It had frightened her to see him so serious, and as if he had sensed what she was feeling, he sheepishly rubbed the back of his head and gave her a little smile, as if to comfort her and smooth over her worries. He took a deep breath. "Hina-chan, do you remember the story of how the Kyuubi no Yoko came to destroy Konoha?" She nodded. "And you know how the legend says that the Yondaime Hokage single-handedly defeated the Kyuubi? That he sealed it into a container?" She nodded again. "Well, I'm that container. I contain the demon that almost destroyed out village. I've been hated all my life because I'm the vessel of the Kyuubi, heck, I may even _be_ the Kyu--" he was cut off by a set of soft, foreign lips being lightly pressed to his. Immediately, he melted against the lips, and his eyes automatically fluttered shut. When they broke apart Hinata finished his sentence. "Naruto, you are not the Kyuubi." She said it with such determination that even he had to gape. There was a fiery blaze in her eyes of love and passion. "Naruto-kun?" he looked at her. She blushed; her sudden moment of outgoing-ness replaced by her usually nervous self. "U-um, I really don't think that you're the Kyuubi. Whatever you think you are, you'll always be the Naruto which I, l-love." He found that after she had squeaked out the last word, he was wondering how he had ever survived without her calming presence. Then he had asked her to be his girlfriend.

After he had proposed to her, and then revived her (because she had dropped into a dead faint right after accepting), he had told her how he had come to love her. How he had realised he loved her. It brought tears to her eyes as she relished the beautiful memory. On their wedding night, he told her yet another story, but unlike the others, it was what he wanted their future together to be like. He had happily told her that he wanted 2 children, and that he would definitely become the Rokudaime, and that he would make her proud. She couldn't believe that she had scored such an excellent catch. Of course, story telling, by then, had become a tradition.

Hinata had always thought that the stories Naruto told her were all part of a bizarre fairytale. She was the princess and he was the prince (in the end). In a fairytale, before he prince marries the princess, he has to overcome a great many things. He must first save her from the clutches of an evil and dangerous being. He must pass tests of wit, tests of strength, tests of courage, and most importantly, tests of love and commitment. Naruto had passed all of them. And yet, he had willingly done more. Because not only had he proved his worthiness to her, and her clan (which was a big feat in itself because her clan had a pole stuck so far up their backside only a miracle could remove it), he had proved his love, his strength, his courage, and his wit to a village which had hated him for something he had not done. On many missions, he had laid down his life faster than the blink of an eye if he knew that the lives of his friends could be spared. In the end, though, he always survived. To her, that was far more than what could have been expected of a normal person, but who said Naruto was normal? No, Naruto had a gift. It was a gift to be proud of. He had the gift of compassion, and regardless of his tough out-side and 'lets do this' attitude, he was really a soft person at heart.

In a fairytale, the prince usually takes it upon himself to rid the land of any evil which may come by. After that, the prince and the princess get married, become the King and the Queen and live a happy and fulfilling life. For Naruto and Hinata though, that was not the case. Their dreams for a peaceful and happy future together were shattered and promptly discarded when Oto declared war against Konoha. Because there will be times in where the king must lead their knights to war to defend their country, their pride and their loved ones. So when Naruto became the Rokudaime Hokage-sama, no-one was surprised when he took it upon himself the role of defending his country, being the first person in the front lines, the one to yell charge, the one to fight with everything he had, the one which everyone else followed. Being the first one (and the last, if he had his way) to lay his life down for everyone whom he liked, disliked or were neutral to. Hinata had always admired greatly that trait, his readiness (whether he liked the situation or not) to be a scapegoat for all the rest. His readiness to yell charge, and go on without hesitation.

Because when a warrior prince marries a warrior princess, when he yells charge, she adds her own battle cry and together they lead their subjects into battle.

Because that is what a warrior princess does.

Because she knew deep down, right at the bottom of her heart that her warrior prince may not come back on his own feet.

Because he may come back as a bloodied up, wounded, lifeless body which was left to rot on a battleground.

And because the only thing she can do now is fight her hardest and pray to Kami above to keep her loved ones safe.

It was a fateful afternoon; a month after the war had began that they lost Kiba, Akamaru, Shino, Chouji and Lee in a surprise attack they desperately weren't ready for. Even though they managed to pull through (mainly because Naruto used one of his Fuuton attacks) Kakashi and Kurenai were badly injured, and Gai was out there somewhere with no means of communication and help. Sakura and Ino were drained from using their medical jutsu's so extensively, Tenten and Neji were huddled in a corner, quietly murmuring to each other, and occasionally dozing off. Both sides of the battle were clearly exhausted, and they were all making the most of a short ceasefire, which would no-doubtedly, end very soon. But their Rokudaime was no-where to be found. He disappeared right after his attack finished, without telling anybody where. Every few minutes, the earth would shake, explosions would be heard and flashed of light and fire would be visible. Though Hinata was shaking with worry, she knew that she could not go to find him, because if he had not come back, she knew who he must have met. And whatever score he was settling, she had no part in it. Because it was not her fight. Because only Naruto could sew together the crack which Sasuke had made when he defected.

But when she stepped into the devastation which had been the private battlegrounds for the Hawk and the Fox, she instantly regretted not coming sooner. Paying no heed to the Uchiha, who was lying prone on the ground, and to whom Ino was already attending to, she ran towards the drooping ray of sunshine which she had ran her fingers through so many times. They were stained a sickly red, and much duller compared to what they had once been. Unwillingly, she looked at his face, white, pale, ghost-like. His eyes were shut, and his jaw was clenched, presumably in his pain. Over his body, he had attained several wounds, a large gash in his side, from which blood was still seeping out of. Three stab wounds, all in his abdomen, and two marks of the Chidori in each shoulder. His arms were also damaged; Hinata guessed that he had used his Rasenshuriken much more than usual. She could not tell if he was conscious or not, but in her heart, she knew that he would not be coming out of this alive. Because he had lost too much blood, because his pulse was already very weak, and even if they were able to get medical attention to him, the medics would not be able to work fast enough to save his life.

His eyelids felt very heavy, and he could see darkness which was very inviting. Slowly, he felt himself succumbing to it. Slowly, but surely. But then, he felt a small, trembling hand he knew and loved so well, place itself tenderly on his forehead, and then move to stroke his cheek. He knew who it was. Forcing his eyes to open, he summoned the last reserves of his diminishing strength. "Hina-chan." He breathed. "Hina-chan, are you okay?" he felt drops of water hit his face. "Hey, Hina-chan, please don't cry. I'll be alright, I'm just a bit cut up, that all." He gave her a tiny smile. "The prince always comes home alright, so believe me, I'll be fine." He clenched his eyes shut for a second, as his breathing became labored, and then went back to the shallow gasps for air that he took. She motioned for him to stop speaking, but he pressed on. "And if I'm the prince, and you are the princess, believe that I'll come home, and then we'll live happily ever after. I'm just a little roughed up," he inhaled deeply; well, as deep as he could with a few broken ribs, "but after some rest I'll be fine. So please, Hina-chan, please don't cry."

Because saying what he said was all he could do to comfort her.

Because in _his _heart, he knew that he wouldn't make it out of this mess alive.

Because he didn't want to see her cry, to see her grieve, to watch her tears fall, and feel them as they landed on his face.

He knew his words were empty. He knew that she knew it too.

But he could see that she was clinging to a tiny thread of hope that maybe, just _maybe_ he might make it out alive.

That maybe, after this blasted war was done they could go back to planning out their future. Have kids, watch them grow, watch them fall in love, be over-protective parents for a while, and then let them go (but not without intimidating the boyfriend first), be the one to walk his daughter down the isle, give his son advice on the subject of proposing, become a grandfather, and watch this beautiful village prosper. _His_ village.

But he knew that his fairytale ended here. Not that his life was much of a fairytale, but he knew that he would never get to experience these things. Because the last Uzumaki would be remembered as Naruto Uzumaki, Jinchuuriki of the Kyuubi no Yoko, Rokudaime Hokage of Konohagakure, No 1# Hyper-active Surprising ninja of the Leaf, and the son of Konohagakure's Kiiroi no Senko (Yellow Flash) who was also the Yondaime Hokage and Uzumaki Kushina.

Because he knew, in his very heart of hearts, that in this fairytale, the prince was not coming home.

Hinata knew that his words were false, and the when the blasted medics did arrive, that they were too late. Still, she could not shake the words "Hey, I'll be alright" out of her mind. Because Naruto, the man who had survived all odds, who had defied fate for so long, could not be dead. He was too strong, too full of fire for it to be extinguished now.

But she had been there when his heart monitor went flat. Even Sakura could not save him. Even Tsunade-hime couldn't do anything. Because that night, Death had finally claimed what had defied him for so long. Because that night the cerulean blue eyes of Konoha's Rokudaime were shut for the last time.

His funeral was a week later. Konohamaru was announced as his successor. Hinata knew Naruto would have been happy about that. It was one of the times the village elders actually honored and respected his decision, and the only time in Konoha's history where the funeral of a Hokage was mourned as a feast, and a festival. Because they knew Naruto would not have wanted a boring funeral service. Even in death, he would have wanted something to spice it up a bit. Everyone attended and took part in it. Civilians and all. Because they say "You don't know what you have until you loose it". And that was exactly right. Because no-one knew what they had until they'd lost it. And now, they were celebrating the success he'd had in his life, and not mourning over the loss of their leader. Because even if they mourned in private, they knew that their Rokudaime would not be pleased to hear that his village was grieving for more than one day over him.

Hinata thought that it was unfair that they didn't get their fairytale. Sakura (eventually) got hers with Sasuke. Ino and Shikamaru were doing well. Neji and Tenten were already the proud parents of two, with another one on the way. But Hinata knew she would never move on. Because he was her one and only. And she knew that if he was alive, she would be his as well.

So one day, when what remained of the Rookie Nine found her pale and unmoving next to her husband's grave stone, they didn't rush her to hospital. They didn't try to revive her. Because they knew that she was happier this way. Because her small mouth was curved up in her first genuine smile in weeks. Because they knew that the fairytale of Naruto and Hinata was a never ending one. So they buried her with him. So they could be finally together. Forever.

And their conjoined gravestone read:

_Here lie two of our greatest of shinobi_

_Who we speak of with great joy and pride._

_Who fought for the village with their heart and soul._

_With love so strong, not even death could conquer_

_With bonds so deep, could nothing break_

_Our Leader, and his Lady,_

_Whose lives should have been long and great, _

_But who, for our sakes, died and early death_

_Will be remembered for their loyalty, _

_Their strength,_

_Their courage,_

_Their intelligence,_

_But most of all, their unbreakable devotion_

_To both this village_

_And themselves._

_Because no-one could deserve peace and happiness_

_More than Uzumaki Naruto and Hinata _

And that is the END!!

Wow, I wasn't going to write so much, I guess I just got carried away with it.

Well, Thanks for reading (for those who didn't get bored halfway), and please click the review button and leave a comment if you can.

Thanks!

-- Bitter-Sweet Teardrops.


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